How bees vaccinate their brood.

[kazmcc]

Someone just posted this article. http://phys.org/news/2015-07-bees-naturally-vaccinate-babies.html

Who knows where this research may lead.

 

[pargyle]

It's an interesting bit of research into bees ... But the worrying bit is that they view it as a potential mechanism for introducing more 'medicines' into the bee food chain.

Obviously, in the USA they have big problems with their bee population and pollinators in general but they seem to spend an awful lot of time and money looking for silver bullets when the underlying cause of a lot of their problems is their innate agriculture and the way they keep bees !

I can well see that the next stage of development will be from BigAg working out how to introduce an anti-varroa serum into the bees by feeding them a cocktail laced with a slow release insecticide.

Sorry Kaz ... not intending to take this off track .. Saturday morning rant over !!!

 

[kazmcc]

It's an interesting bit of research into bees ... But the worrying bit is that they view it as a potential mechanism for introducing more 'medicines' into the bee food chain.

Obviously, in the USA they have big problems with their bee population and pollinators in general but they seem to spend an awful lot of time and money looking for silver bullets when the underlying cause of a lot of their problems is their innate agriculture and the way they keep bees !

I can well see that the next stage of development will be from BigAg working out how to introduce an anti-varroa serum into the bees by feeding them a cocktail laced with a slow release insecticide.

Sorry Kaz ... not intending to take this off track .. Saturday morning rant over !!!

No, I completely see your point, but if they can find a way to protect bees against AFB, that has to be a good thing.

I agree with you about the practices of those big bee farms in the US. I don't pretend to know much about them, but from the little I have seen, it really upsets me to see them throwing around the frames, the state of the combs, the way they are shipped around long distances in the heat etc. I'm not surprised their bees are disappearing in huge numbers

 

[Michael Palmer]

Obviously, in the USA they have big problems with their bee population and pollinators in general but they seem to spend an awful lot of time and money looking for silver bullets when the underlying cause of a lot of their problems is their innate agriculture and the way they keep bees !

Obviously.

 

[pargyle]

Obviously.

I know it's not a general/global problem in the USA, Mike, perhaps my post was a little too sparse and generalised.. but there is an issue with some bee farming in the USA and as you pointed out when I listened to your talk at Bishops Waltham the queen rearing practices in Florida do leave a lot to be desired. The intensive monoculture practised in some areas of the USA is creating almost insect free deserts and cannot be good for the environment in general - regardless of the impact it has on pollinators and the wildlife food chain.

You opted out of the beefarming model that appears to be so damaging (looking at it from the outside and via the many articles that have been written about bee problems in the USA) and you live and work your bees, thoughtfully and carefully, in a beautiful and largely unspoilt part of the states but .... what we see of beefarming more generally over there is not pretty:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21741651

 

[Erichalfbee]

The scientists found that this protein plays a critical, but previously unknown role in providing bee babies protection against disease.

"The process by which bees transfer immunity to their babies was a big mystery until now. What we found is that it's as simple as eating,"




A bit like colostrum, then?

 

[KiwiLad]

On the topic of vaccination more generally, Boris Romanov (in his idiosyncratic style) suggests adding minced onion to sugar syrup feed as a prophylactic: www.beebehavior.com/bee_immunization.php

Does anyone have any experience with this?

 

[Finman]

No, I completely see your point, but if they can find a way to protect bees against AFB, that has to be a good thing.

I agree with you about the practices of those big bee farms in the US. I don't pretend to know much about them, but from the little I have seen, it really upsets me to see them throwing .....

No one vaccinate bees or bee larvae. IT is sure.

Against AFB you may feed tylosin antibiotic. It is very effective.
.
But I have wondered, how bees can eliminate all those microbia what they suck from rotten pools of nature.

 

[Thymallus]

Possibly because their gut is anaerobic and most of the bacteria they will ingest are obligate anaerobes. The normal gut fauna may protect as well.
Plus exposure to the high temperatures in the hive will kill many bacteria and fungi.

 

[beebot]

I know it's not a general/global problem in the USA, Mike, perhaps my post was a little too sparse and generalised.. but there is an issue with some bee farming in the USA and as you pointed out when I listened to your talk at Bishops Waltham the queen rearing practices in Florida do leave a lot to be desired. The intensive monoculture practised in some areas of the USA is creating almost insect free deserts and cannot be good for the environment in general - regardless of the impact it has on pollinators and the wildlife food chain.

Perhaps.

 

[Finman]

Possibly because their gut is anaerobic and most of the bacteria they will ingest are obligate anaerobes. The normal gut fauna may protect as well.
Plus exposure to the high temperatures in the hive will kill many bacteria and fungi.

What about human gut? If you drink from rotten pool or from the wall of ship tank. We have higher temp in gut than bees. And unaerobic too. What measure is "most". What kills "most" bacteria in food is high acidity in the stomach.

.

 

[beebot]

Why do 'we' always see the negative in things when it comes to bee research.
This could lead to a treatment for EFB or AFB. Surely that would be a good thing.
If a research leads to possible new treatment for say leukaemia in humans would we not be saying that's great?

 

[beebot]

What about human gut? If you drink from rotten pool or from the wall of ship tank. We have higher temp in gut than bees. And unaerobic too. What measure is "most". What kills "most" bacteria in food is high acidity in the stomach.

.

And a cocktail of enzymes

 

[Thymallus]

What measure is "most".
.

"Most" is when you don't know the exact number, but know that that few survive. Bound to be a few microaerophiles in there somewhere.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

What about human gut? If you drink from rotten pool or from the wall of ship tank.
.

In this country we don't tend to go around licking the inside walls of cesspits - must be the inferior grade of vodka they sell over here

 

[Finman]

Why do 'we' always see the negative in things when it comes to bee research.
This could lead to a treatment for EFB or AFB. Surely that would be a good thing.
If a research leads to possible new treatment for say leukaemia in humans would we not be saying that's great?

In other countries EBF is not a problem, because when you change genepool of your yard, you will not see it any more. One if the most easy disease of bees.

You are a tough guy when you are going to heal AFB with positive attitude.


Why WE are negative with bee research. It is simple because WE do not have bee research, neither in Finland and nor in UK.

 

[beebot]

Why WE are negative with bee research. It is simple because WE do not have bee research, neither in Finland and nor in UK.

Not sure what you mean here.
No changes there then.

 

[Finman]

In this country we don't tend to go around licking the inside walls of cesspits - must be the inferior grade of vodka they sell over here

You mean that sheep medicine? Do you take it before or after?

 

[B+.]

If a research leads to possible new treatment for say leukaemia in humans would we not be saying that's great?

or ebola http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jul/31/ebola-vaccine-trial-proves-100-successful-in-guinea

 

[Michael Palmer]

You have to understand where I sit and what I see. Doesn't it seem that all the articles are written about Mr. David Hackenburg, and his CCD? Poor Dave can't keep his bees alive. It's Dave in the news and Dave in the magazines, and Dave who started the CCD thing.

And it's Dave who moves his bees in the middle of the day and Dave who has been called the Typhoid Mary of the beekeeping world by one of the head CCD investigators. And it's Dave who gets hundreds of thousand from the government for his dead bees. Dave and others in his camp.

And the national surveys fit right into the jive. Poll the beekeepers (backyard beeks and newbees) who lose most of their bees every year, and arrive at some base line from that data. Ignore the successful beekeepers who don't bother with the survey anymore. Funny thing how they squeaky wheel gets the grease. Tell the government how bad it is and they give money by the truck load to the Dave Hackenburgs.

Meanwhile, lots of us are keeping strong, healthy colonies, making nice honey crops and raising lots of big fat queens. Too busy to be bothered with their absurd surveys. Frustrated and confused by the constant reports on the demise of our beloved honey bees.

Sorry Pargyle, just venting at your expense....meaning nothing by it.